Sabres rout Penguins to end skid

Feb 19, 2012 - 8:49 PM

Buffalo, NY (Sports Network) - Derek Roy tallied twice to go with an assist
and Jason Pominville lit the lamp and dished out two assists, as the Buffalo
Sabres snapped a four-game losing skid with a 6-2 win over the Pittsburgh
Penguins.

Paul Gaustad, Drew Stafford and Tyler Ennis also netted goals for the Sabres,
who got 24 saves from Ryan Miller. Christian Ehrhoff had three helpers.

Brent Johnson allowed three goals on 12 shots before being pulled in favor of
Marc-Andre Fleury, who also let up three tallies on 12 shots.

Deryk Engelland and Jordan Staal provided the goals for the Penguins, who had
won three of four coming in.

The Sabres netted two quick goals on two of their first three shots on net in
the opening 4:16 of the first period. Pominville recorded the first tally just
52 seconds after the game's opening faceoff, while Roy followed with a
backhander to make it 2-0.

Gaustad lit the lamp early in the second period to make it 3-0. Johnson fought
off Nathan Gerbe's wraparound attempt, but Gaustad was in front to put home
the rebound.

Engelland's one-timer from the left point pulled the Penguins back within two
just 47 seconds later.

Near scoring chances highlighted the rest of the period.

Evgeni Malkin nearly brought the Pens within one minutes later, but Miller
made a stellar left pad save on his breakaway attempt. Midway through the
frame, Gerbe's one-timer on a wide-open net ricocheted sharply off the left
post.

Buffalo's Patrick Kaleta was awarded a penalty shot after Chris Kunitz threw
his stick at the puck, but Fleury made a glove save to keep it a 3-1 game.
While on the power play at the 13:04 mark, Ehrhoff's slap shot from the
high slot stung the crossbar.

Staal's backhander on the power play at the 5:05 mark of the third sneaked
through the pads of Miller and barely crossed the goal line to make it 3-2,
but Buffalo regained its two-goal advantage 1:05 later on Stafford's
wraparound.

Roy netted a short-handed tally at 8:32 and Ennis lit the lamp late in the
frame to conclude the scoring.

Game Notes

James Neal signed a six-year extension with the Penguins on Sunday. Acquired
last year from the Stars, Neal's new deal begins next season and has an
average annual value of $5 million...The Sabres were 0-for-5 on the power
play, while Pittsburgh was 1-for-4...The Penguins have still won seven of the
last nine games in the series.